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Who doesn’t love a mimosa to go with a fabulous Sunday brunch?!! And while regular orange juice is lovely, why not add some unique bling and glam-it-up a bit with fresh squeezed blood orange juice? The deep rose-red color makes a regular champagne glass look like an Oscar-worthy celebration…

Throughout the holiday season, we find ourselves entertaining and celebrating with friends and family. Inevitably after a grand feast, I end up with leftover cranberry sauce. In an effort not to be wasteful, I’ve found creative uses for the tart and tangy sauce such as spreading it on turkey sandwiches, throwing it into smoothies, and even placing it on top of a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream on occasion.

This year I came up with a new and exciting way to blow through all the leftover cranberry sauce at once with a fabulous cocktail! Though I’m not a big whiskey fan, I found this libation to flow quite smoothly once you get beyond the initial ‘bite’ of the first sip…

I created this cocktail on a cold, windy autumn evening recently. The warmth of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves and cardamom spices just seem to sink deep into my tired body at the end of a long, cold day and warm it to the bone. As I recall, we sipped this lovely drink while handing out Halloween candy last October 31st!

After our wonderful tasting experience at Prager Winery & Port Works, we stopped into Dean & Deluca for a bit of epicurean perusing. Dean & DeLuca is a chain of fabulous gourmet grocery stores for foodies. The first store was established in New York City in September 1977, in the SoHo district, a rather upscale area in lower Manhattan.

Known for it’s unique selection of meats, cheese, freshly baked bread, and of course, the vast array of gourmet chocolate truffles, this is the perfect place to pick up all the fixins for a decadent picnic in between visiting wineries.

There is nothing better during the hot summer months than cool black beans doing the samba with crunchy red peppers and rich, buttery avocado, all dressed up in a cilantro-lime vinaigrette. This recipe was inspired by a Mexican salad made at the first restaurant I ever worked at in my teen years. I never did get the exact recipe, so I decided to develop my own version based upon the dreamy recollection of my seasoned and discerning palate.

We headed North on the Silverado Trail for a tasting at Rombauer Vineyards. After driving up the curvy, narrow road to the winery, we were greeted by a few colorfully painted cow sculptures and gorgeous landscaped gardens. The winery is located atop a sunny knoll surrounded by giant trees that offer the perfect shield from the bustling valley below. As we stepped from the car, a tranquil, quiet peacefulness overcame our senses and the playful sound of songbirds danced through the air.

I developed the Le Voov! Lox Scramble with my Mother’s mentality prevailing. Clean out the older food in the refrigerator by Sunday! We served an appetizer requiring lox at a party the previous day, and I wanted to make good use of it quickly so it would maintain it’s freshness.
The addition of a small quantity of Gruyere cheese makes for a deep blending of flavors both bright and rich in this lovely scramble.

We visited Elephant Butte Reservoir located on the Rio Grande in New Mexico, just 5-short miles (8.0 km) north of the quaint little town of Truth or Consequences. The name “Elephant Butte” refers to the volcanic core making up the island at the center of the reservoir, which is said to resemble the shape of an elephant reclining on it’s side. The reservoir and the surrounding land are part of the largest state park in the state of New Mexico, Elephant Butte Lake State Park…

This little cocktail emerged during a recent heat wave. After purchasing 20 lbs. of Cara Cara oranges at Costco, I felt compelled to mix up a thirst-quenching, yet hydrating liquid massage for my mind to greet the weekend with a splash.

Massive Mandala On The Beach!
As we were driving along the coast, somewhere between Half Moon Bay & Santa Cruz, when we came across this huge mandala created on a sandy beach.

A mandala (Sanskrit: मण्डल, circle) is a geometric concentrically structured pattern representing the cosmos or the universe. In many spiritual traditions the creation of a mandala is a practice to invite focus, meditation or an induction into trance state. Mandalas are also used to establish a sacred space.

We visited our local Farmer’s Market yesterday and discovered a huge selection of amazingly sweet, juicy, yellow peaches. This fabulous find led us to the obvious conclusion that there was nothing left to do but celebrate by making some peach & vanilla ice cream crêpes for dessert! I assure you, it just doesn’t get much better than this…

We took this photo while strolling along the Embarcadero in San Francisco. This exciting sculpture is called ‘Cupid’s Span’, created by famed pop artist Claes Oldenburg and his wife, Coosje van Bruggen. 💘

The brightly painted fiberglass-and-steel sculpture stands approx. 60 feet (18 meters) in Rincon Park at the foot of the San Francisco Bay Bridge. Installed in 2002, the artist’s inspiration for this piece was San Francisco’s reputation as the ‘City of Passion’, invoking the mythological account of Eros shooting his arrow into the center of the earth to make it fertile. Many have commented that while Cupid’s bow is symbolic of love, the shape of this magnificent work also evokes sailing ships and the Bay Bridge itself.

Along with the hot days of summer, we all need an icy cool cocktail now and then to enjoy. This lovely mixture came about by sheer laziness during a recent heat wave. Early in the morning, I had made myself an energizing, freshly squeezed juice in my Breville Juicer (available at our Le Voov! Amazon Store) after hitting a local farmer’s market. Usually, I’m fairly religious about cleaning my juicer right away, because it’s a real pain the rear to scrub if the pulp dries to the inside of the ridiculously sharp grinder blades…

We had an enchanting visit to Safari West in the heart of California’s Sonoma wine country recently, where this picture was taken. Commonly known as the ‘Sonoma Serengeti’, Safari West is comprised of 400 acres cradled in the mountainous area above Santa Rosa. Visitors are welcome to wander the trails and partake in the open-truck safaris to experience over 1000 exotic African species of mammals and birds within the natural habitat of this beautiful wildlife preserve.

On a lazy weekend, I’ll spend a bit more time creating a lovely breakfast for my family and friends. However, during the week, it needs to be quick and easy. This combination of Black Forest ham, eggs, mushrooms, fresh basil pesto, scallions and Gruyère cheese is a perfectly delightful breakfast to savor! I make this glorious, healthy breakfast on the weekend, and enjoy it again and again just by heating up the leftovers during the busy weekdays.

We have used this sauce on everything from Filet Mignon to fish tacos, chicken to a fresh vegetable stir-fry, and it never fails to impress. The blending of classic chimichurri ingredients with the delightful, rich flavors of chutney inspired the development of this recipe. I always double the batch so I have leftovers to throw into a stir-fry or over morning eggs. Please feel free to contact us and let us know your favorite application for this fabulous exotic condiment. Enjoy! 🙂

Napa Postal Mushrooms! We came upon this glorious stone mushroom installation in front of the post office while wandering through Napa Valley wine country. The long shadows of the autumn light made for a dynamic, interesting composition. 🍄 🍷 🍇

We took this picture while vacationing in Lake Tahoe, California. Every time I look at this photo it makes me smile with the memories of our exciting day sporting around the lake in a speed boat, dragging a tube with some member of our party white knuckled, trying to hang on for dear life! This was followed by the inevitable yipping and howling after the individual on the tube was projected, at high velocity, through the air, and touched down in the water with an exhilarating splash.

As with most pasta, this salad gets better and better over time. As the pasta cools, the flavors mingle and blend into a lovely group of complementary flavors on the palate. This recipe is perfect for a BBQ or party because it’s easy to make and it feeds a lot of hungry people!

About

Le Voov! represents my passion for life. I believe clean air, purified water, sunshine, fresh flowers, wine, garlic, music, and laughter with family and friends all nourish the soul. Creating and enjoying delicious, healthy meals with those I love brings me an immense amount of happiness. Good nutrition is at the core of my belief that with a strong foundation of health and wellness, one can achieve anything they desire in life. As my wise sensei always said; "One cannot project what is not collected…"

Restaurant Review

At Le Voov! we celebrate the fresh, wholesome, healthy cuisine made available to us by the many talented chefs in restaurants around the globe. In blending our appreciation for quality food, with our adventurous spirit to explore a variety of cultures through our curious palate, we seek out the spices, flavors and culinary traditions from every corner of this little blue planet.

If you know of an extraordinary restaurant you would like us to review, please access our contact information and share your secret spot. Thank you in advance!

Product Review

At Le Voov! we appreciate the value of efficient, high-quality products for the home. Over the years, friends and family have asked me to make a list of my favorite gadgets, tools, gifts and books for the home and the garden.

Guess Where I Am…? 🌎

Guess Where I Am...?

From time to time, I post a photo of some magical place on the planet we’ve visited recently with the question ‘Guess Where I Am…?’ I provide the location and information pertaining to the photo. If you are so observant and well traveled as to get many of the answers correct, you can be assured you are living the Voovacious Lifestyle!

During a recent construction project at the house, an abandoned heater vent was discovered tucked deep under the lath & plaster. Apparently no one had bothered to inform the dog about this new gaping whole in the wall, and just guess what happened…?

Yep, Otter-Pop’s favorite and most cherished toy, her obnoxious yellow squeaky-ball, found it’s way down into that naughty hole in the wall. Rats! 😬

Le Voov! Movie Guide 🎥

We have always enjoyed an eclectic array of cinematic adventures in our movie choices! When I was in college, I developed a movie rating system involving a cow named ‘Bessie’. Bessie would become bipedal and applaud if she liked the film, sit in her movie chair with her legs crossed if she was bored, or leave a simple, steaming pile of poop if she thought the movie was below her very high, bovine standards. Perhaps in time I will resurrect the image of dear Bessie the cow, but for now, here is a smattering of some truly amazing movies I’ve enjoyed over the years. If you wish to share a voovacious cinematic title or two with us, please feel free to Contact us. Enjoy!

Dear Matilda

Thelma & Louise

Dear Matilda,

One of my best gal pals from college lives across the country. We have remained very close over the years, talking several times a week by phone and Skype. Two months ago, we decided to plan a road trip to Colorado to visit her niece, whom I’m very close with. We’re both really excited to have a bit of quality face-to-face time together while traveling. So, we’ve been enthusiastically planning excursions and adventures into our 6-day journey, including museums, shopping, a girls spa day, hiking a few national parks, fun restaurants to visit with her niece, etc.

Then, about three weeks ago, I was contacted by another friend from college whom I have consciously maintained little interaction with over the years. She informed me that she’d heard about our road trip and invited herself to join us...